This impressive volume of 1046 pages is the publication of the proceedings of a conference on the Greek Mainland in the Bronze Age held in Athens in March 2006, organised by the French School at Athens, the American School of Classical Studies at Athens and the Netherlands Institute in Athens. The volume includes 63 papers and 28 posters in Greek, English and French, each conveniently preceded by short abstracts in the two languages other than that of the paper or poster. The book opens with a preface by the directors of the three organising Schools and an introduction by the editors. There then follows a useful list of abbreviations of publications and chronological subdivisions, as bibliographical references are included in the footnotes of each paper. This book aims to bring to the forefront hard evidence which it is hoped will generate fruitful discussion on whether Middle Helladic (MH) Greece is still to be considered “The Third World” of the Aegean1 in terms of cultural level and social processes.

In his usual vivid and succinct way, Oliver Dickinson uses his keynote paper to provide the broader background to many of the hotly debated issues in the study of MH society. Naturally, many of the contributions that follow in the main body of the book are strongly empirical in approach, presenting evidence that helps to fill material, geographical, and chronological gaps, including data from the application of cutting-edge scientific methods. The editors have effectively opted to organise the large number of papers in seven thematic sections, including the poster presentations in the relevant parts. Inevitably, some papers discuss evidence related to more than one sections, but on the whole the outline of the book works for the reader. Nonetheless, the empirical and thematic foci work well together, as an effort is made by the editors to cluster papers presenting evidence from specific sites in broad geographical/regional terms within each thematic section.

The first section is the longest, as it includes 27 papers and posters on Topography and Settlement. Reports on new evidence, mostly retrieved in rescue excavations conducted by the Greek Archaeological Service, as well as thorough restudy of older material, provide us with the essential information for the reconsideration of settlement patterns, social organisation and local sequences. The clarification of Middle Bronze Age (MBA) site stratigraphies and the refinement of chronological phasing will hopefully trigger a much needed boost to research, allowing a comprehensive review of our perceptions of the nature of MH sites and their interaction patterns. Perhaps, however, the most welcome addition is the filling of the gaps in our knowledge of the habitation patterns of areas largely under-represented in the archaeological record. Starting with the Peloponnese, this is the case for Troezenia, with important discoveries at Megali Magoula, Galatas, presented by Konsolaki-Yiannopoulou; and Achaia, with reports on the sites of Pagona in the hinterland of modern Patras by Dietz and Stavropoulou-Gatsi, Aigion by Papazoglou-Manioudaki, and Aigeira by Alram-Stern. Similarly, Rambach offers an overview of recent research at MH sites in Elis and Messenia in the western Peloponnese, while evidence from Laconia is presented by Crouwel, on the important site of the acropolis of Geraki, and Zavvou, who reviews finds from known and newly located sites in the area of Sparta and wider Laconia. Synthetic approaches as a result of restudy of older material enhance our understanding of sites in the Argolid and Messenia (see papers by Demakopoulou and Divari-Valakou, Shelton, Davis and Stocker, Zavadil), while an insular detour extends the boundaries of the MH world to include the important site of Aegina, Kolonna discussed in Gauss and Smetana; the site of Lazarides on the same island presented by Sgouritsa; and the MBA acropolis at Sklavos, Salamis, with surface survey finds reviewed by Lolos. The MH period in Attica is now better understood both in regional and chronological terms as demonstrated by new evidence and restudied material discussed in five papers and one poster. A synthetic approach to the archaeological record for MH Attica by Papadimitriou argues that most sites, with the exception of Thorikos, retained a strong MH character well into the Late Helladic (LH) period. Moving further to Central Greece and Thessaly, balance is restored with new evidence shedding light on insufficiently known MH habitation patterns in the areas of Navpactia, Achaea Phthiotis and Karditsa, and focus on the MBA levels from the renowned sites at Eretria in Euboea, Palamari on the island of Skyros, and Dimini in Thessaly.

The second section of the volume comprises 15 papers and posters on Mortuary Practices and Physical Anthropology. Apart from a series of papers on new information and critical discussion on grave types and funerary practices in the Argolid and Central Greece, significant contributions by physical anthropologists and other forensic scientists included in this section testify to the emergence of bio-archaeology as a promising field in recent years. The anthropological and analytical data retrieved from the study of human bones and teeth, including breakthrough DNA analysis and facial reconstruction of human remains from Mycenae and Lerna, allow for critical insights into the study of MH populations, such as the detection of nutrition and subsistence habits and the nature of diseases, as well as the reconstruction of socioeconomic patterns and kinship relations.

Given that the fields of Symbolism and Ritual in MH Greece are still considered blurry areas due to lack of related evidence, the five papers in the third section of the volume embark upon a challenging venture. Yiannouli and Blakolmer draw on evidence from weapons and iconography respectively to discuss symbolic meanings, while Theodorou-Mavrommatidi, Whittaker and Tranta-Nikoli delve into manifestations of religious beliefs and ritual action in MH societies. In view of the limitations of the material, the contributions present informative arguments on the use of hard evidence to infer ideological aspects building on a sound methodology.

The fact that only ten papers and posters discuss Pottery and Chronology in the fourth section of the book testifies to a shift in current research interests, as also noted by the editors in the concluding remarks. Nonetheless, this field undoubtedly constitutes the backbone for any further approach to archaeological data.2 Therefore, papers by Cosmopoulos on Eleusis, Stamoudi on Kastro Lamias, Papakonstantinou and Sakkas on Amouri in the Spercheios valley and Froussou on Neo Monastiri Phthiotidas provide a better understanding of local sequences and ceramic production and complement the first section of the book in enriching data on insufficiently known areas. A thorough re-evaluation of distinctive MH pottery classes, exploring specific characteristics, chronological attributions and geographical distribution, is presented in papers by Dakoronia, Sarri, Overbeck and Mathioudaki. On a more methodological note, Gauss presents the research database implemented as an instrumental tool for the classification of the pottery from Aegina Kolonna, while Voutsaki et al. stress the significance of the application of radiocarbon dating methods on well-stratified contexts from MH Lerna.

In the fifth section on Production, Technology and Economy, two main fields are addressed. One is related to dietary and subsistence patterns in MH Mainland Greece and Aegina Kolonna, examined in two papers and a poster drawing on archaeozoological, archaeobotanical and marine data. The other is artefact production and consumption, discussed in three papers by Skorda, Spencer and Kiriatzi on pottery and one by Kayafa on metallurgy, with particular emphasis on technological practices and their social contexts. These integrated approaches reflect meaningful advances in the study of material assemblages, in that they can be inherently linked with issues discussed in the next section on social organisation and change. Of particular interest is the critical assessment of the outlook of material production during and towards the end of the MH period, with a view to exploring the big issue of the rise of the LH cultural phenomenon. Given that the MH period has been traditionally, and not without good reason, considered as unexciting in artistic expression and technological advances, a closer look at material production and consumption certainly has the potential to revise fundamentally these long-standing views.

Along similar lines, but on a more theoretical level, four papers and one poster in the sixth section explore aspects of Social Organisation and Social Change in MH Greece. Drawing on the archaeological record, Bintliff, Voutsaki, Philippa-Touchais and Wright offer socio-political perspectives into aspects of demography, domestic economy, settlement planning and social group identities and interaction. Hitchcock and Chapin emphasise the need for a closer look at the data from Laconia on MH exchange networks and the emergence of elite groups. These insights aim towards a more subtle understanding of social dynamics and social change in MH communities, moving a step forward from the traditional quest for the formative processes that led to the rise of social complexity in Mycenaean societies.

Finally, a lengthy section with twenty papers and posters is dedicated to External Relations and Interaction. The almost pejorative treatment of MH culture(s) in Aegean Bronze Age studies has inevitably stemmed from comparison with the preceding EH and the following LH periods, but, possibly more influentially, from comparison with the contemporary thriving Middle Minoan and Middle Cycladic cultural groups and social structures. For this reason, this section is significant in that it places the MH in the wider context of interactions and synchronisms in the Aegean and beyond. While most of the papers on the Cyclades, Crete and the northeast Aegean (the island of Lemnos and western Anatolia) focus on the presentation of local sequences and traits at each site, interesting links with the Mainland are attested in terms of interaction and synchronisms. Evidence from Macedonia, a broad area at the periphery of the MH world which has not yet received due attention in Bronze Age studies, is discussed in a series of papers and posters bringing to light new data and exploring secular aspects, burial practices and interaction. Metallinou reviews the evidence from Corfu, an island with interesting interaction patterns due to its strategic location. The main body of the book is completed with glimpses into MBA material culture from two sites outside the borders of modern Greece, Sovjan in southeastern Albania and Vivara in Italy.

In the concluding remarks the editors emphasise the multifaceted contribution of the papers presented in the conference to the current state of research. Indeed, the compilation of topics in this volume reflects a much needed integrated approach to a disputed era. While due emphasis is unavoidably placed on problematic transitional phases at the beginning and end of the period and the big question of the origins of Mycenaean culture, it becomes evident that the main issue of bringing centre-stage the MH as a distinct cultural period is successfully addressed. This latter point is best exemplified by the misbalance attested among the sections of the book: the most numerous, the first section on the dissemination of data from MH sites and the last section on MH external relations, raise new questions about the uniformity of the MH culture(s) and the nature of interregional interactions in MBA Aegean and beyond.

The volume is certainly not meant to be read cover to cover, but it will definitely be used as a principal reference tool for scholars. The editors are to be commended for the quality of the publication, not least for the very few typographical errors in such a large volume. Illustrations are conveniently set at the end of each paper/poster. However, more plates for ceramic material, especially in colour, and petrographic thin sections would be most welcome by specialists, as only a small number of colour plates is reserved for sherd material from Vivara. A map with all sites mentioned would also be very useful and representative of the breadth of the areas covered in the book.

To sum up, it is too early to judge whether this collective volume represents in itself a rewriting of the history of the MH period, as all data needs to be brought together and assessed in future synthetic work. Nonetheless, it undoubtedly instigates a thought-provoking re-evaluation of the MH communities and it will certainly be at the centre of scholarly debate on the nature of this intriguing period.

III. UNIVERS SYMBOLIQUE ET RITUELEvyenia YIANNOULI, Middle Helladic between Minoan and Mycenaean: On the Symbolic Meaning of Offensive Instruments 497-507Fritz BLAKOLMER, The Iconography of the Shaft Grave Period as Evidence for a Middle Helladic Tradition of Figurative Arts? 509-519Anthi THEODOROU-MAVROMMATIDI, Deﬁning Ritual Action. A Middle Helladic Pit at the Site of Apollo Maleatas in Epidauros 521-533Helène WHITTAKER, Some Thoughts on Middle Helladic Religious Beliefs and Ritual and their Signiﬁcance in Relation to Social Structure 535-543Alexandra TRANTA-NIKOLI, Elements of Middle Helladic Religious Tradition and their Survival in Mycenaean Religion (poster) 545-548